Views from the Choir Loft

Catholic Artists Society

Fr. David Friel · September 8, 2013

NE DAY OVER THE SUMMER, I made a day trip to New York City. My main purpose was to apply for a visa at the Brazilian consulate in order to go to World Youth Day. As I walked from Penn Station to the consulate, though, I happened to pass by the exquisite Church of Our Savior on Park Avenue. Amid many blocks of unremarkable skyscrapers and apartment complexes, this church stood out as quite an impressive building. The door was open, so I stopped in to make a visit. Upon leaving, I took a copy of their bulletin, in which I discovered that their then-pastor was the eminent Fr. George Rutler.

Another thing I discovered in the bulletin was information about The Catholic Artists Society. After checking out the group online when I got home, it seems like a very worthwhile society. In conjunction with the Thomistic Institute, they will present an exciting lecture series over the next few months. Here are the speakers and topics:

Art: For Whose Sake? (Gregory Wolfe, Editor, Image Journal)

The Responsibility of the Artist (Fr. Peter John Cameron, OP, editor, Magnificat)

Forming the Artist (David Clayton, Thomas More College)

Beauty and the Real (Alice Ramos, St. John’s University)

Love and Artistic Genesis (Anthony Esolen, Providence College)

Virtue and the Artistic Imagination (Fr. Joseph Koterski, SJ, Fordham University)

Anyone who lives within traveling distance to the Big Apple, take note. The series will be held on Saturday nights at 7:30 PM in the heart of Greenwich Village. These lectures look very worthwhile.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

About Fr. David Friel

Ordained in 2011, Father Friel is a priest of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia and serves as Director of Liturgy at Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary. —(Read full biography).

Bugnini’s Statement (6 November 1966)

With each passing day, more is revealed about how the enemies of the liturgy accomplished their goals. For instance, Hannibal Bugnini deeply resented the way Vatican II said Gregorian Chant “must be given first place in liturgical services.” On 6 November 1966, his cadre wrote a letter attempting to justify the elimination of Gregorian Chant with this brazen statement: “What really gives a Mass its tone is not so much the songs as it is the prayers and readings.” Bugnini’s cadre then attacked the very heart of Gregorian Chant (viz. the Proprium Missae), bemoaning how the Proprium Missae “is completely new each Sunday and feast day.” There is much more to be said about this topic. Stay tuned.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Luis Martínez Must Go!

Sevilla Cathedral (entry dated 13 December 1564): The chapter orders Luis Martínez, a cathedral chaplain, to stay away from the choirbook-stand when the rest of the singers gather around it to sing polyphony—the reason being that “he throws the others out of tune.” [Excerpt from “The Life of Father Francisco Guerrero.”]

—Jeff Ostrowski

Urgent! • We Desperately Need Funds!

A few days ago, the president of Corpus Christi Watershed posted this urgent appeal for funds. Please help us make sure we’re never forced to place our content behind a paywall. We feel it’s crucial that 100% of our content remains free to everyone. We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity, entirely dependent upon the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment and no major donors. We run no advertisements and have no savings. We beg you to consider donating $4.00 per month. Thank you!

—Jeff Ostrowski

Pope Pius XII Hymnal?

Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.

—Corpus Christi Watershed

“Hybrid” Chant Notation?

Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.

—Corpus Christi Watershed

Antiphons Don’t Match?

A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).

—Corpus Christi Watershed